Supporting device



Feb. 8, 1949. J. c. BRIDGES SUPPORTING DEVICE Filed June 18, 1945 INVENTOR. JOHN 6152/0658 Patented Feb. 8, 1949 John C. Bridges, .Dallas, T ex., assignor to Ellen G. Eiselein, Dallas, Tex.

Application June is, 1945,'SerialNo.60ll,180

1 Claims. (01. 248-279) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in adjustable hangers or supports,

and particularly to such devices adapted for use with hospital beds for supporting articles suchas containers of plasma, glucose or the like.

Therefore, one object of the invention is to provide a hanger for supporting medical accessories in proper and convenient positions for use-by, or in treatment of, a patient confined in a bed.

An important object of the invention is toprovide an appliance of the character described which is adapted to be secured to the head or foot of a bed in a manner which permits it to be used to position medical accessories at the proper point over the bed and which permits retraction of the appliance, when not in use, to a position which does not interfere with normal use'of the bed.

Another object of the invention is to provide an appliance of the character described having a supporting mechanism which is adjustable to a plurality of predetermined elevations, whereby the hanger may b-epositioned at any one of several elevations to accommodatevarying conditions of use. p

A still further object of the invention is to provide a support of the character described which is readily adjustable and is retractable to a reduced length whereby it may be conveniently secured in inoperative position when not in use.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an appliance, of the character described, which does not have detachable parts and is constantly maintained in condition ready for use.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention willv be apparent from a reading of the following description of a device constructed in accordance with the invention, and reference to the accompanying drawings thereof, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view, in elevation, showing one form of the invention in elevated position and ready for use,

Figure 2 is a view, in elevation, showing the appliance in its inoperative or retracted position, 7

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view, partly in elevation and partly in section, illustrating one form of the pivot shaft of the base member,

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the guide element, taken on the line 14 of Figure 1,

Figure 5 is a view of a modified form of the invention, illustrating another means for clamping V the hanger in its adjusted elevated positions,

Figure 6 is a side view showing the tapered end of the extension beams, and

Figure '7 is: a view of a..modified form of the base member.

In the drawings, a bed B, having the customary vertical head or foot frame It, is illustrated as having the support S of the invention secured thereto. The support includes' a rectangular plate or base member H which is secured by means of'substantially U-shaped clamping straps is, whereby the base member may be securely fixed on the frame I 0, as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 3.

A'n elongate pivot pin or shaftlfi has one end secured substantially centrally of the upper portion of the base member or plate and extends vertically therefrom for a short distance then is bent at an obtuse angle in a horizontal plane which is vertical with respect to the plate. The angular portion of the pin or shaft extends a substantial distance from the plate and the pin is then bent in an acute angle to lie parallel to said base member orplatein a horizontal plane, as shown in Figure 3. The'extreme end of the pin or shaft extend-s slightly beyond the outer edge of the base member and is provided with a cap or head member 16 for apurpose which will be hereinafter explained. It is to be noted that the shaft may be mounted on the base member'in other manners, as will be hereinafter explained.

An elongate arm or rod ll having a substantially flat end or hinge section it is movably secured on the shaft if: by means of a slot I9, which is formed near the end of the fiat portion [8 and extends longitudinally of said flat portion. The shaft extends through the slot so that the arm is pivoted on said shaft, and the hinge section is retained on the shaft by the cap member l6.

Since the pivot shaft l5 extends slightly beyond the edge of the base member,- it will be seen that the arm 11 may be moved outwardly on the shaft to a point adjacent the head it and swung upwardly past the frame l0. In this manner the support may be raised to operative positioneven though the bed is close tothe wall of the room.

Forholding the arm in an elevated position, the base member has an elongate vertical receiving slot20 formed in its upper end and adapted to extend along the outer portion of the bed frame Iii, as is clearlyshown in Figure 2. The flat section l8 of the arm is engaged within this elongate slot to support the arm in an elevated position and to prevent tilting or rotation thereof. It will be noted that the angular portion of the shaft l5 is so disposed that the flat hinge section of the base member and spaced below the shaft 15. The

catch member is provided at its outer end with a substantially U-shapedspring receiving or clip element 23 which is adapted to receive the arm I! and securely hold the same in the position illustrated in Figure 2. The engagement of the clip member with the arm is readily releasable whereby the arm may be disengaged and lifted to elevated position for use.

An extension bar 25 has one end pivotally secured to a slide or rider 26 which is slidably mounted on the arm 11. A guide element 2'! is fixed to the outer end of the elongate arm and has a depending strap and catch element 28 through which the bar 25 is slidablaas shown in Figure,

4. The underside of the bar 25 is provided with a plurality of spaced notches 3B which are arranged for engagement with the strap or catch element 28, as illustrated in Figure 1, so that the bar may be moved outwardly with respect to the arm I! and held in such extended elevated position. Since the .bar 25 is pivoted on the slide 26, it will be readily seen that when the notches 30 engage the catch 28 the bar will drop slightly as the catch enters the notch, and that the bar will thus be securely held in its extended and elevated position. In order to retract the bar it is only necessary to lift it slightly to disengage the notch 38 from the catch and slide the bar longitudinally of the arm toward the base member.

Manifestly, other means for securing the extension bar 25 in an extended elevated position may be provided, as will be hereinafter explained. A substantially cruciform hanger 3| is pivotally secured to the outer end of the bar 25 and has a hook 32 for engagement with an eyelet or other opening in the medical accessory which is to be carried by the support. The cross arm 33 of the hanger is also pivoted so that it may be turned into alignment with the upright section of the hanger when in retracted position. Furthermore, the outer portions of the cross arm may also be bent or curved slightly (Figure 2) so that ,any receptacle which is mounted on the hanger will be maintained in a substantially vertical position.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that the support may be attached to either the head frame or foot frame of the bed and that the arm and extension bar may be retracted to a shortened length and securely clamped in the position illustrated in Figure 2, whereby the support is maintained in a position in which it does not interfere with normal use of the bed. It will also be seen that the support is constantly ready for use, that there are nothumb screws or other detachable parts contained in the assembly which could tion with the hinge section [8 engaged in the vertical slot 20 and the extension bar raised to an extended elevated position as shown in Figure 1, whereupon the support is ready for immediate use. Bottles of plasma, irrigation vessels, and the like, may be supported on the hanger and held steady therebyfor use in treatment of a patient on the bed.

Since the notches 30 are formed at predetermined points on the underside of the extension bar, the hanger may be moved to and positioned in the correct elevated position for the use to which the medical appliance is to be put. The spacing of the notches may be set such that the hanger is elevated in'increments of three, six or any other desired number of inches. In this manner, the hanger may be repeatedly raised to 4 the same predetermined desired elevation during any number of times it may be used.

Of course, other means for adjusting the extension bar may be utilized than that shown in Figures 1 through 4. One such modification is illustrated in Figure 5, wherein the arm 48 is substantially identical with the arm l1 of the previous form. A sleevelike clamp member 49 is slidable on the arm, being restrained from displacement from the outer end thereof by a stop pin 50. An elongate extension bar or beam 51, having its inner end tapered at 52, is hingedly secured to the sleeve 49 between depending clamping plates 53 by means of a bolt and a non-removable wing nut 54. The extension bar or beam has a hanger (not shown) pivotally secured to its outer end in the same manner as the hanger of the previous form.

Thesleevelike clamp member 49 may be positioned at any desired point along thearm 48 and secured in such position by tightening the wing nut. The tapered portion of the beam permits said beam to tilt slightly downwardly, the tapered section engaging the underside of the arm 48.

Obviously, the pivot shaft may be mounted on the base member in a manner different from that already described. In Figure '7, a base member H, substantially identical to that of the first described form of the invention, is secured to the frame H] by means of U-shaped strap bolts 12 having their ends provided with screw threads whereby nuts 73 may be tightened thereon to fix the base member on the bed frame. A bar 14 extends vertically from the base member and is located atone side of the upper portion of the base member. A pivot pin or shaft 75 is mounted on the outer end of the bar 14 and extends substantially parallel to the face of the base member, terminating in a cap or head member 16 slightly beyond the edge of the base member. The elongate arm or rod l! is mounted on the shaft 76 in the same manner as the arm of the form first described, and is adapted to engage in an elongate vertical receiving slot 11 formed in the upper end of the base member. Other parts of this form of the support are the same as those first described and bear the same numerals, it being desired to illustrate merely another form of base member and pivot shaft.

From the foregoing it will be seen that various means may be provided for adjusting the extension bar or beam on the elongate arm supported by the base member. In each case, however, it willbe seen that I have provided a support which is adapted to be secured to the head or foot of a bed in such a manner that it may be used to position medical accessories at the proper point over the bed for use in treatment of a patient confined in a bed; that the assembly is retractable, when not in use, to a position which does not interfere with normal use of the bed; that the hanger may be adjusted to any desired elevation to accommodate varying conditions of use; that the assembly is retractable to a reduced length whereby it may be conveniently stored in inoperative position when not in use; that there are no detachable parts and the complete appliance is constantly maintained in condition for ready use when desired.

The foregoing description ofthe invention is explanatory only, and changes in the details of the construction illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

said arm being adapted to engage in the receiving member to be maintained in an elevated position by such engagement, the engagement'of the arm in said receiving member preventing rotation of the arm about its longitudinal axis.

2. A support including, an upright base member, a pivot shaft carried by the base member and spaced from and lying in a horizontal plane and parallel to the face of the base member, an elongate supporting arm having one end flattened and provided with a longitudinally extending slot, the pivot shaft extending through.

said slot whereby the arm is swingably supported on and movable through an arc in the plane of the axis of said shaft, and receiving means at the upper end of the base member engage- Y able by the flat portion of the supporting arm for maintaining said supporting arm'in an ele-' vated position and preventing rotation of the arm. about its longitudinal axis.

3. A support including, an upright base member having aslot at its upper end, a pivot shaft carried by the base member spaced from and lying parallel to the face of the base member in a horizontal plane, an elongate supporting arm having a longitudinally extending axial slot at one end loosely pivoted on the pivot shaft so as to be swingable thereon and through an arc in the plane of the axis of said shaft, said arm being arranged to engage the slot at the upper end of the base member whereby the arm is maintained in an elevated position and may be swung in an are about said slot as a pivot with the loosely pivoted slotted end of the arm sliding on the pivot shaft through an arc with respect to its longitudinal axis, and a hanger-member carried by the supporting arm. V 4. A supporting appliance including, a base member in the form of a fiat substantially rectangular plate adapted to be secured in an up right position on a bed frame and having a vertical receiving slot at its upper end, an elongate pivot shaft carried by the base member and spaced from and extending parallel to said base member in a horizontal plane, an elongate supporting arm having a fiat hinge section at one end provided with a longitudinally extending slot, the pivot shaft extending through I said slot whereby the arm is swingably supported on and may be turned at an angle with respect to the spaced from and extending parallel to said base member in a horizontal plane, an elongate supporting arm. having a flat hinge section at one end provided with a longitudinally extending I slot, the pivot shaftextending through said slot whereby the arm is swingably supported on and may be turned through an angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, said arm being movable to an elevated position with the flat hinge section engaging in the receiving slot at the upper end of the base member whereby the supporting arm is maintained in elevated position with respect to the bed, an extension beam carried by thesupporting arm and adjustable longitudinally on said arm, and hanger 'means adjustably secured to the outer end of the extensionbeam.

6. A support including, an upright substan.

" tially rectangular fiat base member, a pivot shaft carried by the base member and lying in a horizontal plane and spaced therefrom, an elongate supporting arm having a flat hinge. section at one and provided with a longitudinally extending slot, the pivot shaft extending through said slot whereby the arm is swingably supported on longitudinal axisof the shaft, said arm being movable to an elevated position with the fiat hinge section engagingthe receiving slot of the maintained in an elevated position with respect to the bed and is restrained against rotation about its longitudinal axis, and adjustable hanger means carried by said supporting arm.

5. A supporting appliance including, a base member in the form of a flat substantially rec-,

file of this patent:

base member whereby the supporting arm is Number and may be turned through an arc in the plane of the longitudinal axis of said shaft, receiving means at the upper end of the base member constituting, a vertically extending notch engageable by the fiat hinge section of the supporting arm for maintainingsaid arm against rotation about its longitudinal axis and in an elevated position, an extension beam carried by the supporting arm and adjustable longitudinally on said arm, and hanger means adjustably secured to the outer end of the extension beam.

7. In a supporting device, a base member in the form of .a fiatxplateladapted to be secured in an upright position on a bed frame, an elongate supportingarm swingably'mounted on th'e'base' member and engageable with the base member to be supported thereby in an elevated position,

an extension member below the supporting arm extending parallel to and movable with relation to said supporting arm, strap means secured to the outer end of the supporting arm slidably en- 7 gaging the extension member, strapmeans se cured to the inner end 'of theextension member slidably engaging the supporting arm, said strap means permitting and guiding'movement of the extension member longitudinally below and parallel with respect tothe supporting arm, and

means on oneof the strap means" for releasably securing the extension member at various adjusted positions relative to the supporting arm] JO N o. BRIDGES-.7 I REFERENCESWCITED The following'references are of UNITED STATES PATENTS V Date N m .448,582 Krem Mar. 17, 1891 759,698 Graham May 10, ,1904 ;,;1,03s,500 Vinson July 23, 1912 1,129,960 Conning et a1, Mar. 2, 1915 1,174,218 Young Mar. 7, 1916 1,837,380

record'in the ,'-Ionko n son Dec. 22, 1931 v 

